


to my face, directly

by akanemnida



Category: NU'EST, Produce 101 (TV), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, i couldnt get the baekho box out of my head
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2019-04-24 17:24:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14360112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/akanemnida/pseuds/akanemnida
Summary: "Oppa, you're the most handsome boy in the world~!"(Or: The three times Hwang Minhyun leaves notes in the box Kang Dongho set aside for his fans' love letters.)





	to my face, directly

**Author's Note:**

  * For [overrcome](https://archiveofourown.org/users/overrcome/gifts).



> It's been way too long! :)  
> I really couldn't get Dongho's little box of stolen fansign post-its and fan letters out of my mind. It's just... so cute. And now, an entire one-shot based around it. Whee.
> 
> (For you, my love, for encouraging me to post whatever I had despite my seven hundred insecurities. You did a lot for me that night. Thank you.)

 

 

 

The first time he does it, it was to get rid of his own guilt.

 

Minhyun knew that Dongho always keeps (read: steals) his favorite fansign post-its in a box to read whenever he was sad or upset. And Dongho was especially upset today, with a fan calling his hairstyle _ahjussi_ -like in the comments section of their broadcast. Which made Minhyun laugh uncontrollably. On livestream.

 

So maybe he was kind of sort of sometimes an asshole.

 

But even if he found that stray comment funny, he didn't necessarily _agree_ with what it said. Dongho had forgiven him for laughing (they have been assholes to each other way too often for it to hurt Dongho for too long). Dongho at his pettiest was honestly just as bad as Minhyun when it comes to dishing out insults.

 

But Minhyun hadn't quite forgiven himself, because he knew that looks have been a recent source of insecurity for his best friend. Dongho's image was the furthest from being idol-esque, with his broad shoulders and his long torso and his short legs. The company had been pressuring Dongho to lose weight (he really didn't need to, Minhyun thinks, but whatever the boss said had to be done), to get treatments for his recurring acne (hormones and pimples are normal but apparently not for idols; but then again Dongho's skincare routine consisted entirely of Innisfree VIP goods and stolen serums from Minki's dresser), to maybe, _maybe_ consider laser hair removal so that, and he quotes, _Kang Dongho-ssi, don't you think it would be nice if you don't_ _have to keep shaving off your stubble that can't be tamed_?

 

(Minhyun vetoed that last idea quickly, claiming that it was unnecessary, and that Dongho was already doing a good job with his regular shaving.

 

It wasn't because he thought of Dongho's facial hair as sexy. _Not at all_.)

 

To Minhyun there really was nothing  _ahjussi_ with the way Dongho looked. It was _manly;_ rugged and charming and different. Dongho had a small face and nice eyebrows and the prettiest light brown eyes in the world. Anyone who finds it in themselves to insult Dongho's appearance was blind.

 

Hwang Minhyun can sometimes be an asshole, but one thing's for sure: Hwang Minhyun is not blind.

 

The least he could've done was to not lose his shit laughing at that comment, but he failed and...

 

 _Well_. He can at least sneak something in the Baekho box that would make Dongho happy.

 

So he takes a piece of paper from his desk drawer and begins writing.

 

  
_Kang Baekho-oppa~!_ _♥_

_Your eyes are very pretty and your smile is very nice!_

_What do you like the most about your face? Choose one!_

_[] nice eyes_

_[] nice smile_

_[] other: ___________________

 

 

* * *

 

 

Dongho ends up reading it a few hours later, not noticing that the note was written entirely in Minhyun's handwriting, not realizing that it was a post-it that he hadn't seen in a fansign before.

 

"Minhyun-ah! What do you like more, my smile or my eyes?"

 

Minhyun tries to suppress a grin. "What brought this on?"

 

"This post-it note I stole from the fansign two weeks ago," Dongho says with a laugh. "I forgot someone even asked me this. And now I don't know what to answer."

 

"Check the last box."

 

"Other?"

 

"Yup. Both. Tattoos. Thighs. Hands. Ass—"

 

There's a blush on Dongho's cheeks and Minhyun tries to burn the image in his mind. There's a pounding in his ears and he doesn't know what to make of it. "Shut _up_ , Minhyun-ah."

 

(After a minute of consideration, Dongho checks the box for "nice smile".)

 

 

* * *

 

 

They're hanging out at the dinner table: Dongho is looking through his box of post-its while Minhyun is reading a book. Minhyun tries his best not to peek at Dongho's reactions: his expressions while reading his fans' letters were nothing short of adorable, a mix of disbelief and pride and pure joy.

 

They were cute, those little smiles. Minhyun wishes Dongho would smile like that more often.

 

He left a note again, this time just for fun. Today's note was short, annoying, and obnoxiously written on scented pink paper.

 

This second time was with the intent of making Dongho laugh. Life had been stressful for Dongho lately, with the mixed burdens of having to maintain his recent diet, writing new songs for the group, and being the Pledis Girlz's vocal trainer. It had been a while since he's seen Dongho laugh.

 

So he decides to pull his "sneak a note into Dongho's box" bullshit for the second time.

 

It was going well, with Dongho trying to hide little smiles while reading notes from his fans and Minhyun enjoying pretending to read his book while watching Dongho try to hide those smiles...

 

...except Jonghyun was hanging around them this time, and Jonghyun is a _lot_ more observant than Dongho is.

 

"What does that note say?" Jonghyun says while peering over Dongho's shoulder. "Hey, that looks like Minhyunnie's handwriting?"

 

Minhyun freezes.

 

Dongho gives the note a cursory glance, and then scrunches his nose. "It's probably just coincidence, Minhyun has the penmanship of a girl."

 

"Not all girls write neatly, Baekho-ya," Jonghyun reminds him gently.

 

"You get what I mean. But. For Minhyun to write _'Oppa, you're the most handsome boy in the world~_ '? That's just out of character."

 

Jonghyun shrugs, then eyes Minhyun suspiciously.

 

Minhyun gulps.

 

"I can see it happening."

 

Dongho stares at him blankly. "Minhyun thinks _he's_ the most handsome boy in the world," he deadpans, and Minhyun lets out a sigh of relief. "He's not giving up that title too easily."

 

"Guys, I'm right here," Minhyun says with his arms crossed. "Stop talking about me as if I'm not here."

 

"Well—if you say so, Baekho-ya," Jonghyun says, glaring at Minhyun.

 

_(Jonghyun's single look had said it all:_

 

_I don’t like what you're doing, Hwang Minhyun.)_

 

 

* * *

 

 

Later that night, with Dongho in his bedroom and well out of earshot, Jonghyun takes him aside.

 

"Hwang Minhyun, what the hell are you doing?"

 

"Sending Baekho-ya cute notes?" Minhyun says, feigning innocence.

 

"He thinks they're from fans, Minhyun-ah," Jonghyun says, his tone soft but stern. This is the voice Jonghyun uses when he strongly disapproves of whatever the other party is doing. "It's not fair to him."

 

"I'm his fan!"

 

"Minhyun-ah, you know what I mean."

 

"I mean—Okay, fine, I get it, but, he looks like he needed the slight dose of happiness?" Minhyun answers. He raises his hands up in defense. "I've only done it twice."

 

Jonghyun frowns. "Not as often as I thought, which is good."

 

"I meant every word I wrote, though! It's not _that_ wrong."

 

"Oppa, you're the most handsome—" Jonghyun starts dryly. "I don't even want to finish saying it. And you didn't mean it. You think you're the most handsome—"

 

"I do _not_."

 

Jonghyun raises his eyebrows.

 

"Okay, _maybe_ I went overboard with that one, but he laughed!"

 

Jonghyun smiles. "Anyone would laugh at a message as dumb as that, Minhyun-ah. I know your intentions are good, but still. It's not fair to him, or to his fans. He needs to know what his actual fans think of him—"

 

"I am his fan..." Minhyun says weakly.

 

"—and in turn, he needs to know _exactly_ what you think about him."

 

A beat. 

 

"Jonghyunnie, what are you saying?" 

 

_What does Jonghyun know?_

 

"Next time, say _it_ to his face."

 

_Why does Jonghyun know?_

 

(The way Jonghyun places emphasis on the word  _it._ Minhyun tries not to panic.)

 

_Well._

_Jonghyun knows everything._

 

Minhyun lets out a resigned sigh. There really was no use hiding anything from his leader. "I haven't even acknowledged it to _myself_ but... How did you figure it out?"

 

Jonghyun laughs. It's loud and wild and Minhyun kind of wants to smother his face with a pillow. "You're not very subtle. You stare at him too much."

 

 

* * *

 

 

Despite his agreement with Jonghyun a few months back, Minhyun still sneaks in one last letter into the Baekho box.

 

He does it the night before he moves out to live with the Wanna One boys, a mix of excitement and slight anxiety thrumming in his veins. He's excited for the year and a half he has ahead of him but...

 

There are things he'll be leaving behind: the familiarity of spending every waking hour with the four boys he's shared the past seven years with, the comfort of his dorm room and the warmth of his bed, the three unspoken words he still has to figure out how to _say_ to that one person—

 

He has little courage and even less time. 

 

He puts a pen to paper and writes:

 

_Kang Dongho:_

_I love you._

_You probably know this already._

_\- Hwang Minhyun_

 

* * *

 

 

He receives a call in the middle of October.

 

"Minhyun-ah, did you leave that note?"

 

"What note?" he replies, his heart stuck in his throat. He knows exactly which note Dongho is talking about.

 

Honestly, he should have expected this phone call. There would be no fansigns until Nu'est had a comeback, which meant Dongho had no reason to open the box until then and _today_ was their first fansign and—

 

Minhyun feels a little bit dumb for his many, many lapses in judgement.

 

"I don't want to read it aloud, it's _cheesy_ ," Dongho responds, laughing. "You left it and signed it and it's written in your handwriting."

 

"You can recognize my handwriting?"

 

Dongho hums. "Yeah, but only sometimes. It looks a little bit girly — _wait_. Why did you leave this note in the box?"

 

"Um."

 

"I mean, yeah, I knew it already. Thank you. Did it really have to be said?"

 

"Say it back then," Minhyun answers petulantly, in a last-ditch effort to reinforce a strong front, to hide the fact that his heart is currently doing backflips.

 

He could practically hear Dongho's eyes narrow over the phone.

 

"No. Maybe in a year and a half. When you come back."

 

"I can wait," Minhyun says, a huge smile breaking out on his face. It went well, better than he'd expected.

 

"Good. See you then. It's what you deserve for not saying it to my face, directly.”

 

Minhyun could only gape at his phone once Dongho hangs up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos keep me motivated. If you want to reach me, find me on twitter (@akanemnida).


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